U.S. Greenhouse Gas Emissions Decline, Economy Grows, Environmentalists Complain

U.S. carbon dioxide emissions dropped 1.3 percent last year even as the economy grew by 3.3 percent.

The 1.3 percent drop in CO{-2} emissions marks the first time that U.S. pollution linked to global warming has declined in absolute terms since 2001 and the first time it has gone down since 1990 while the economy was thriving. Carbon dioxide emissions declined in both 2001 and 1991, in large part because of economic slowdowns during those years.

That’s good news, right? No, not in some circles.

"This is more proof that this President just doesn't get it when it comes to combating climate change," Sen. John F. Kerry (D-Mass.) said in a statement yesterday.

Let’s see, if U.S. greenhouse gas emissions continue to drop by 1.3 percent per year, by 2050 they’ll have been cut by 60% without destroying the economy. What’s Kerry got in mind?

Jeremy Symons, who directs the National Wildlife Federation's global warming program, wasn’t happy with the news either:

"Unfortunately, until we have government mandates to cut global warming pollution from big polluters, this year's good news will be swallowed by the trend of rising pollution levels."

In fact, since 1990 green house gas emissions from U.S. industry (“big polluters”) have been flat and U.S. methane emissions are slightly down in absolute terms.